5 Easy Steps for Oven Roasted Chestnuts

Have you ever wondered how to roast chestnuts? Surprisingly, there is no special equipment required. All it takes is 20 minutes and 5 Easy Steps for Oven Roasted Chestnuts.

I spotted them last week-end and I felt like a kid in a candy store!

Chestnuts!!!

The holidays would not be the holidays without them. So, if you have ever asked yourself how to roast chestnuts, I would like to show you my 5 Easy Steps for Oven Roasted Chestnuts.

I feel like I should include a disclaimer – as the saying goes, perfection is not of this world. Believe me when I tell you that I have tried all kinds of methods in my “how to roast chestnuts”quest. I have come to the conclusion that no one method is 100% perfect.

In other words, what I’m trying to say is that there will always be a few chestnuts that will get stuck to their shell. But despite that, the method I’m about to share with you is the best that I’ve found.

What do I need to make Roasted Chestnuts?

Chestnuts! No surprise here. You can use as many chestnuts as you like. Make sure they are firm to the touch.

Water. That’s right, our chestnuts are going to get boiled before getting baked.

As far as accessories are concerned, you need a cutting board, a sharp serrated knife, a large pot and a baking pan.

How to Roast Chestnuts:

1-Preheat oven to 425°: A very hot oven is key for the chestnut to separate from its woodsy skin. Make sure the oven rack is placed in the middle.

2- Make an incision: Lay the chestnut flat on your cutting board. With a serrated knife, make a lengthwise slit down the entire middle surface, on the long side. Make sure you hold down the chestnut firmly on the cutting board (be careful not to cut yourself as the outer shell is very slippery).

You must also make sure that the incision cuts through the inner skin of the chestnuts. The incision will allow the steam to escape from the nut as it is being heated. If the chestnuts are not properly scored, they will explode in the oven… that’s a fact I’ve confirmed myself…

3- Boil the chestnuts: Place the chestnuts in a pot of cold water. As soon as the water begins to boil, remove the chestnuts with a slotted spoon and place on a shallow baking pan. This quick boil will create the perfect environment for steam to be created once they hit the hot oven.

4- Roasting chestnuts in oven: Place the chestnuts with the flat side down, the cut side up in a single layer in your baking pan. Roast in the oven for about 15-20 minutes. This time can vary based on the size of your chestnuts. I will give the pan a few shakes throughout the roasting time. You will notice that the shell splits open as they roast. The only way to know if they are cooked through is by eating one of the roasted chestnuts.

5-Wrap them up: Once you have obtained perfectly oven roasted chestnuts, remove from the oven and wrap them in a clean tea towel. Allow the wrapped chestnuts to sit in the towel for about 10-15 minutes.

Your perfectly roasted chestnuts are now ready to be served.

Tips, Tricks and Recipe Notes:

Chestnuts are easier to remove from their shell when they are warm. If you have leftover chestnuts, you can peel them and refrigerate them for a day or two. Your peeled chestnuts can also be frozen.

When purchasing look for chestnuts that

have a glossy look;

are unblemished;

are firm to the touch and

feel heavy for their size.

Always try to roast your store bought chestnuts within 2-3 days as the freshness will not last very long, even in the fridge. If you uncover moldy or bad chestnuts, they need to be discarded. Unfortunately, this can only be discovered once they are roasted and removed from the shell.

Recipe origins

Looking back, I think my whole family was obsessed with how to roast Italian chestnuts.

I remember my Mom trying to grow chestnut trees. She successfully started a few from seed. The trees had a couple of good, chestnut-full years, but unfortunately, the chestnuts would fall before they had a chance to completely ripen.

More often than not, the store bought chestnuts were roasted –oven or fire roasted. My parents had all the gadgets and the pots and the pans to make the best roasted chestnuts.

Sometimes, my mom would just boil them and we would have them as after school snacks.

Did you know that they make absolutely wonderful desserts once they are pureed? Have you ever had chocolate and chestnuts together? Italians desserts from the South are notorious for stuffing these gems in pastry dough.

Of course, chestnuts can just as easily be prepared in savory dishes. Did someone say stuffing?

I adapted this method on how to roast chestnuts from Chef John Mitzewich. Chef John uses no fancy gadgets or knives. Just a serrated knife, a pot and a simple roasting pan. Thanks Chef John!

The holidays would not be the holidays without chestnuts. I know they’ll be part of my Thanksgiving meal. Just 5 Easy Steps for Oven Roasted Chestnuts and they can also be part of your Thanksgiving.

Thanks for allowing me the possibility to share some of my favorite recipes with all of you.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones ♥

THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.

Ciao for now,

Maria

★★★★★ If you have used this method to roast chestnuts, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!

5 Easy Steps for Oven Roasted Chestnuts

The holidays would not be the holidays without chestnuts. All it takes is 20 minutes and 5 easy steps for oven roasted chestnuts.

Ingredients

16ouncesChestnutsor as many as desired

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425°: Place oven rack in the middle.

Make an incision by laying the chestnut flat on your cutting board. With a serrated knife, make a lengthwise slit down the entire middle surface, on the long side. Make sure you hold down the chestnut firmly on the cutting board (be careful not to cut yourself as the outer shell is very slippery).

Place the chestnuts in a pot of cold water. As soon as the water begins to boil, remove the chestnuts with a slotted spoon and place on a shallow baking pan.

Place the chestnuts with the flat side down, the cut side up in a single layer in your baking pan. Roast in the oven for about 15-20 minutes.

Once you have obtained perfectly oven roasted chestnuts, remove from the oven and wrap them in a clean tea towel. Allow the wrapped chestnuts to sit in the towel for about 10-15 minutes.

Serve immediately.

Scroll UP for the STEP by STEP PhotosDon't miss the process shots and videos included in most posts. Simply scroll up the post to find them. Those were created especially for you so that you can make the recipe perfectly every single time you try it.

Video

Notes

You can roast as many chestnuts as you like.

Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is just a rough estimate and variations can occur depending on the specific ingredients used.

About Maria

Maria Vannelli is a registered dietitian who lives in a suburb just outside Montreal, Canada. She's the founder of the food blog She Loves Biscotti. Maria hopes to inspire you and bring you and your loved ones closer together at meal times enabling you to create some memorable moments.

Comments

I’ve had a chestnut tree in my yard for years and always wanted to try roasting them. I used this method and it worked perfect but unfortunately I am not a fan of the taste. They are very dry and bitter is this the way they always taste?

Sorry to hear you did not like the taste Amy. Chestnuts should not be bitter in taste… nor should they be dry. If I were to describe the texture, I would say they are starchy. Did you plant the chestnut tree yourself or was it already there? This may seem like a silly question but just want to make sure it isn’t a horse chestnut tree as those are extremely bitter and inedible. Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂

Hi Tara, It is always disappointing when you get a bad batch of chestnuts. Unfortunately just because you picked them up yesterday, does not mean that they were properly stored at ideal temperatures during the whole process before you purchased them. I recently also purchased some chestnuts and almost half of them were “black” on the inside. As far as the “dryness” is concerned, oven temperatures can sometimes vary… perhaps they stayed in the oven a bit too long… Sorry to hear you did not have a great experience with chestnuts. Appreciate your comment 🙂

Thsnks for sharing. Roasting them as I write this. We had chestnut trees in our yard when I was a child and mom always boiled them. I did want to make one comment that my grandfather told us for anybody wanting to grow chestnut trees. In order to grow chestnuts to maturity, you must have both a male and female tree. Otherwise they will just fall off before the nuts mature. (The males do not produce fruit.) Happy Roasting!

This worked great! Finally I know how to do this thanks to your post! I was disappointed that many of them were moldy. I thought it was something I had done wrong. What makes them mold on the inside? Is there a way of preventing that from happening?

Great to hear that it worked for you Beth! Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing how fresh the chestnuts are until you open them up. There are a few things you can do… make sure to roast the chestnuts within 2-3 days of purchase; also, try to purchase chestnuts which are firm to the touch and feel heavy for their size. Thanks for taking the time to comment, appreciate it! Happy Holidays to you and yours ♥

Maria- You are the best for reposting this from Chef John. Unlike most of his recipes, this was exclusively on About.com, and has since disappeared. In searching the vast interwebs I came across your recipe which is just like his (except I think he salts his cold water)

As I figured others would be searching for that recipe I put a link to your recipe from his comments to your recipe.

Let me know if that is a problem and I will delete it, but I consider it a public service.

I wasn’t aware his post is gone. No problem Tony! His method works great. As a lover of all things chestnuts, I wanted to share his method with my readers as I know how frustrating it is when you can’t remove the chestnut from its skin. We chestnut lovers have to stick together 😉 Tony,thanks so much for dropping by. Wishing you all the best during this holiday period.

I didn’t actually make these, but I do mine similarly. The only difference is a vertical slit on the flat side vs. a horizontal on the round side. I’m going to try it this way and see how the peel goes… might work better! I also use a basket in the oven, rather than a sheet or pan… keeps the heat even. And I coat them with coconut oil. This is a new thing for me (traditional Italian family), but I like the taste of the oil with the nut, and it makes them easier to peel and for the salt to stick. 😉

About Maria

Hello and Welcome to She Loves Biscotti! I'm Maria: dietitian and full time content creator. Join me as I share traditional Italian recipes from my youth, to modern twists on classics using fresh and seasonal ingredients.